UAE · AED · checked 12 September 2026

What compliance costs a UAE small business

Corporate tax, VAT returns and someone to keep the books. Move the slider for the tax, read the ledger for the fees, and check the date you actually have to file by.

Corporate tax due

AED 20,250

Effective rate 3.4%

Taxable income AED 600,000

Or type an exact amount (AED)

Band	Income in band	Tax
0% on the first AED 375,000	375,000	0
9% above AED 375,000	225,000	20,250
Total due		20,250

Revenue has been AED 3,000,000 or less in this and every earlier tax period (Small Business Relief)

Works on taxable income after adjustments, not on revenue. General information, not tax advice.

Next corporate tax deadline

Financial year ends in

Return and payment due

30 September 2026

in 18 days · for the period ended 31 December 2025

Corporate tax rule: 9 months from the end of the tax period.
VAT return and payment: 28 days after each tax period ends.

The figures behind the bill

9%

Corporate tax above AED 375,000
AED 375,000

Taxable income charged at 0% first
AED 375,000

VAT registration becomes mandatory at
AED 3,000,000

Small Business Relief revenue limit

The compliance year

Two deadlines run a small business year: a VAT return after each tax period, and one corporate tax return nine months after the financial year ends.

January

28 VAT return · Oct–Dec
February
March
April

28 VAT return · Jan–Mar
May
June
July

28 VAT return · Apr–Jun
August
September

30 Corporate tax return and payment
October

28 VAT return · Jul–Sep
November
December

VAT return and payment within 28 days of the period ending. Corporate tax return and payment within 9 months of the period ending.

Example for a financial year ending 31 December with VAT quarters ending in March, June, September and December. The FTA assigns your tax period.

A year of fees, with a running total

Advertised prices from accounting firms, multiplied by how often the rules make you do each thing. Your quote will differ; this is the shape of the year.

Item	Basis	Cost a year	Running total
Bookkeeping AED 500–2,500 a month	12 months × 500–2,500	6,000–30,000	6,000–30,000
VAT returns from AED 499	4 returns × from 499	from 1,996	7,996–31,996+
Corporate tax return AED 2,500–5,000 a year	once a year	2,500–5,000	10,496–36,996+
Year total			10,496–36,996+
Audit, where one is needed AED 15,000–40,000 a year		15,000–40,000	—

Prices advertised by accounting firms, not a quote. Audit sits outside the total because not every business needs one.

Build your own total

What turns into a penalty

Every rule below is an obligation with a date attached. Miss the date and the FTA has grounds to charge.

R01 VAT return 28 days from the end of the tax period, to file and to pay.
R02 Corporate tax return 9 months from the end of the tax period, and the same date to pay.
R03 Small Business Relief elected in the return and you still register, file a simplified return and keep records.
R04 Record keeping 7 years after the end of the tax period they relate to.
R05 Records not kept administrative penalties under the relevant tax legislation.

We do not publish penalty amounts here. They are set by Cabinet decisions, and we could not verify the text in force on 12 September 2026. On a legal figure we would rather show nothing than repeat a number from a secondary source. FTA legislation.

Guides

01 UAE corporate tax explained for small businesses Who pays, how the 0% and 9% bands work, and what a filing costs. Corporate tax 4 min
02 Small Business Relief, now extended to 2029 The AED 3 million revenue test, who is shut out, and why you still file. Corporate tax 3 min
03 Corporate tax return and payment deadlines Nine months from year end, worked through for real financial years. Corporate tax 3 min
04 Free zone qualifying income, in plain terms What the 0% rate covers, what is taxed at 9%, and what we will not guess. Corporate tax 3 min
05 VAT registration thresholds: AED 375,000 and AED 187,500 When you must register, when you may, and how the 12-month test works. VAT 3 min
06 What VAT return filing costs a small business Four returns a year, 28 days each, and what firms advertise to prepare them. VAT 3 min

All guides

For accounting firms

Requests from owners who already know what they need

People arrive here to read the rules and work out the cost. A request arrives with the emirate, the licence type, a revenue band and the services wanted.

How it works

Sources

§ official government source · ¤ figure published by a business

Official Corporate tax rate on taxable income up to AED 375,000: 0%. UAE Government portal (u.ae). Checked 2026-09-12
Official Corporate tax rate on taxable income above AED 375,000: 9%. UAE Government portal (u.ae). Checked 2026-09-12
Official Taxable income charged at 0% before the 9% corporate tax rate applies: AED 375,000. UAE Government portal (u.ae). Checked 2026-09-12
Official A taxable person must file its corporate tax return no later than this long after the end of the tax period (Article 53, Corporate Tax Law): 9 months. Ministry of Finance, Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 and its amendments. Checked 2026-09-12
Official The same deadline generally applies to paying the corporate tax due for the period: within 9 months. Ministry of Finance, Corporate Tax. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Records supporting a corporate tax return must be kept for this long after the end of the tax period they relate to (Article 56, Corporate Tax Law): 7 years. Ministry of Finance, Federal Decree-Law No. 47 of 2022 and its amendments. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Failing to maintain the records required under the Tax Procedures Law and the Corporate Tax Law results in administrative penalties under the relevant tax legislation: administrative penalties. Federal Tax Authority, news release of 2 September 2026. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Revenue limit for Small Business Relief, which must be met in the current tax period and every previous tax period: AED 3,000,000. Federal Tax Authority, Small Business Relief. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Small Business Relief applies to tax periods starting on or after 1 June 2023 and ending on or before this date, after Ministerial Decision No. 131 of 2026 extended it: 31 December 2029. Ministry of Finance, Ministerial Decision No. 131 of 2026. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Small Business Relief is elected in the corporate tax return; eligible businesses must still register, file a simplified return and keep records: elected in the return. Federal Tax Authority, news release of 3 August 2026. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Standard VAT rate on taxable supplies and imports (Article 3, Federal Decree-Law No. 8 of 2017): 5%. Federal Tax Authority, Federal Decree-Law No. 8 of 2017 on VAT and amendments. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Mandatory VAT registration threshold: taxable supplies and imports above this over the previous 12 months, or expected to exceed it in the next 30 days: AED 375,000. Federal Tax Authority, Registration for VAT. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Voluntary VAT registration threshold for taxable supplies and imports, or taxable expenses, over the previous 12 months or the next 30 days: AED 187,500. Federal Tax Authority, Registration for VAT. Checked 2026-09-12
Official Length of the standard VAT tax period, unless the FTA assigns a different one (Article 62, VAT Executive Regulation): three calendar months. Federal Tax Authority, Cabinet Decision No. 52 of 2017 (VAT Executive Regulation) and its amendments. Checked 2026-09-12
Official A VAT return must be filed and the VAT paid within this period from the end of the tax period: 28 days. Federal Tax Authority, Filing VAT returns and making payments. Checked 2026-09-12
Industry Outsourced bookkeeping for a small business with straightforward transactions, as published in an accounting firm's cost guide: AED 500–2,500 a month. Accounting firm cost guide (finanshels.com). Checked 2026-09-12
Industry Annual corporate tax filing fees in the UAE, as reported in an accounting firm's guide: AED 2,500–5,000 a year. Accounting firm guide (finanshels.com). Checked 2026-09-12
Industry Advertised starting price for VAT filing by an online accounting firm; the page does not publish an upper price: from AED 499. Accounting firm service listing (finanshels.com). Checked 2026-09-12
Industry Annual audit cost for UAE SMEs, as reported in an accounting firm's guide: AED 15,000–40,000 a year. Accounting firm guide (finanshels.com). Checked 2026-09-12